Long Beach State's annual fundraising gala, Jewels of the Night, will celebrate its 20th anniversary this year. Jewels of the Night is the marquee event for generating revenue to support the more than 300 Long Beach State student-athletes in their quest to realize both their academic and athletic ambitions.

Long Beach State offers 19 Division I sports on California's second-largest campus. Located in one of Southern California's best coastal cities, LBSU brings marquee facilities, coaches and administration to exceed the needs of more than 300 student-athletes. Click here

With one of just three Pyramids in the United States, a baseball stadium that has been home to MLB greats such as Troy Tulowitzki, Evan Longoria and Jered Weaver and a marquee tennis complex, Long Beach State Athletics offers some of the finest competitive facilities in California. Click here

The first-place 49ers (15-9, 11-2) continue their home stand on Saturday when they host UC Riverside (5-19, 2-10) at 4:05 pm in the Walter Pyramid. Long Beach has won the last two games and will look to extend its win streak to three on Saturday.

The Last Meeting

Long Beach State

91

UC Riverside

82

OT

January 17, 2013
Riverside, Calif.

49ers Need OT to Get Past Highlanders
The first-place Long Beach State men's basketball team was pushed to the limits on Thursday evening as they needed overtime to get past a pesky UC Riverside squad, defeating the Highlanders 91-82.

LAST TIME OUT | LONG BEACH STATE 85, CAL STATE FULLERTON 65: Long Beach State held the No. 4 scoring team in the country to just 35% shooting and 65 points as the 49ers defeated Cal State Fullerton for Head Coach Dan Monson's 100th career win at The Beach. Five players scored in double-digits, highlighted by double-doubles from James Ennis (26/15) and Tony Freeland (13/12).

BIG WEST HOME WIN STREAK ON THE LINE: Long Beach State is riding a 24-game home conference winning streak and will look to extend it when they host UC Riverside on Saturday. The 49ers last home conference loss came in 2010 when they fell to Pacific. Long Beach has also won the last three games against the Highlanders in the Pyramid.

MONSON NOTCHES 100TH VICTORY AT LBSU: Head Coach Dan Monson tallied his 100th career victory at LBSU on Wednesday night when the 49ers defeated Cal State Fullerton. He is the third winningiest coach all-time at Long Beach behind only Jerry Tarkanian (122-20) and Seth Greenberg (105-70).

49ERS RECEIVE VOTES IN MID-MAJOR POLL: Long Beach State received three votes in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major poll. Last week, they had eight votes.

TV SELECTIONS MADE FOR UC IRVINE & PACIFIC GAME: Fox Sports West will air both the March 2 UC Irvine game and March 9 Pacific game. Both will be broadcasted live at 4:00 pm.

49ERS TO FACE STEPHEN F. AUSTIN IN BRACKETBUSTER: Long Beach State will face Southland Conference's Stephen F. Austin (20-2,) on Friday, Feb. 22 in a Ramada Worldwide Bracketbuster game. The contest will be televised live on ESPNU at 6:00 pm (PT).

THE 49ERS ON THE INTERNET: Rob Brender will provide play-by-play for the fourth consecutive season. All games can be heard on longbeachstate.com.

ENNIS CONTINUES TO POST HUGE NUMBERS: Senior James Ennis is currently riding a 29-game double-digit scoring streak and has notched eight games scoring more than 20 points this season. He has led the team in scoring in five of the last eight games, while averaging 33.2 minutes per Big West contest. Ennis has shot 50% or better from the field in each of the last eight games, and he became the first Div. I player this season to tally at least 26 points, 15 rebounds and four steals in the 49ers victory over CSUF on 2/13. The senior also ranks third in the conference in blocked shots (1.5/game), seventh in scoring (17.5 pts.), ninth in field goal percentage (54.2%) and seventh in free throw percentage (82.6%).

CAFFEY HAS CAREER NIGHT AGAINST NORTHRIDGE: Mike Caffey's performance against Northridge on 2/9 was crucial in LBSU defeating the Matadors. He scored 20 of his team-high 22 points in the second half, and shot 100% from the three-point (4-of-4) and free throw (2-of-2) lines. His 22 points were a career-high for the sophomore. He also added five assists in the win. Caffey leads the team in assists with 99, while holding a 1.4 assist to turnover ratio.

FREELAND & KING THRIVING IN STARTING ROLES: Transfers Tony Freeland (DePaul) and Keala King (Arizona State) became eligible for the Dec. 29 Pacific game after sitting out the required year by the NCAA and have been key contributors to the 49ers first-place showing in the Big West. Long Beach State is now 10-1 with both in the starting line-up. King is third on the team in rebounding (5.6) and fifth in scoring (9.1) and has tallied two double-doubles this season. Against CSUF, he tallied a game-high six assists while scoring in double-digits (10) and grabbing seven boards. Freeland notched his first double-double of the season against CSUF, scoring 13, while grabbing a career-high 12 rebounds. He also dished out four assists and had two steals.

JENNINGS IN THE POST: Junior center Dan Jennings is in his first season playing for Long Beach State after transferring from West Virginia, and has been a solid contributor in the Long Beach lineup, scoring in double-figures in eight games this year, while shooting 50% or better in seven of the last 10 games. On the season, Jennings is averaging 9.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, and has had some of his best performances of the season on the biggest stage. At No. 4 Syracuse, Jennings led the 49ers with a career high 20 points and three blocks while adding seven rebounds, and then scored 16 points and grabbed eight boards at No. 7 Ohio State. Jennings was also one point away from a double-double against No. 11 North Carolina, scoring nine points with a career-best 10 rebounds. In his highest-scoring effort, Jennings scored a career-high 27 points on 13-of-15 shooting at UCLA.

PAPPAGEORGE'S BENCH PLAY HAS BEEN BIG: One of the team's captains, Peter Pappageorge has been a key bench player for the 49ers this season. He currently ranks fifth in Big West games for three-point field goal percentage (.467, 21-of-45) and has made 14 three-pointers over the last seven games. He made a career-high five three-pointers at Northridge, helping the 49ers defeat the Matadors 83-80, then added 12 points and two steals against Fullerton in the 49ers 85-65 win.